


Ain't nothing but missing you

by BladeoftheNebula



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Blind Date, Getting Back Together, Light Angst, M/M, Mistakes were made, Pining, Romance, but they're sorting it ok?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-18 04:27:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29112303
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BladeoftheNebula/pseuds/BladeoftheNebula
Summary: Tony's friends convince him to sign up for a blind dating service to help him get over his painful break up with Steve.Guess who his date is.
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Comments: 30
Kudos: 194
Collections: POTS (18+) Stony Stocking 2020





	Ain't nothing but missing you

**Author's Note:**

  * For [AvengersNewB](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvengersNewB/gifts).
  * In response to a prompt by [AvengersNewB](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvengersNewB/pseuds/AvengersNewB) in the [stony_stocking_2020](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/stony_stocking_2020) collection. 



> **Prompt:  
>  1) AvengersNewB**  
>  **3) *Tony's been miserable since the break up with Steve. he's spiralled between sleepless nights, drinking, engineering binges and all sorts of other things in between for months. He is doing a little better now, at least he shows up to SI meetings in a clean suit and doesn't seem an inch away from passing out from hunger all the time, so Pepper and Rhodey decide it's time for him to date again. They sign him up to a blind date service and the only thing they ask from Tony about is to fill in the interests and preferences form. The guy matched with him seems perfect on paper, he is an honored veteran, an artist, loves kids and volunteers in homeless shelters on Sundays. He is even blond and bulky, apparently, and he is looking for something meaningful and a longterm relationship.  
> **  
>  The minor problem when Tony shows up on the date is ... that his blind date is Steve Rogers.
> 
> Enjoy!!! ❤️

“No. No, no, no, _no_!” Tony cried, pointing at the man in front of him. “My luck cannot be this bad. What could I possibly have done to deserve this?”

Steve crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Let Pepper organise your life instead of taking care of yourself, as usual?”

Tony scowled. “Doesn’t explain you. What, did Nat finally trick you into dating again?”

Steve huffed. “Maybe.”

That unexpectedly made Tony’s heart ache. The shock of seeing Steve made him miss the implications of what this meeting meant. That Steve had...moved on.

Agreeing to sign up to this blind date service was meant to be a chance at something new, not an opportunity for the universe to dig up his past and tear his heart out in the middle of a moderately priced Manhattan restaurant.

Steve looked at him for a moment, an odd expression on his face. “I guess I should just go then.”

“I guess so.”

Steve looked at the floor and sighed. “Fine.” He turned and walked out the door.

Tony stared at the spotless red tablecloth, unsure what to do. He felt...sad, he thought. Like he’d been punched in the gut. He should call the waiter over, pay for his glass of wine and--

“Why did you agree to go on a blind date with someone like me?”

Tony looked up, meeting Steve’s frustrated gaze. He had his hands braced on the back of the chair, the Rogers’ stubbornness on full display.

“What?” Tony croaked, then cleared his throat. “What do you mean?”

“I know what my profile said, Tony. Artist, volunteer, veteran. It said I was a _veteran_ , you hated that I was in the army, why would you go out with another soldier?”

“I didn’t hate that you were in the army,” Tony denied. “I hated that you wanted to sign up for another tour when Bucky had already lost his arm and you’d only just recovered from the explosion. I hated worrying about you.”

“It was my job. A lot of my squad were going back, I had no right to do any less than them.”

“You’d already sacrificed enough! You had done your job, and you were still going to leave again. Where I would have to wait, praying I didn’t get that phone call, or end up standing next to your mom when she got handed a folded flag. She didn’t want you to go back either, but you were being so stubborn you wouldn’t listen to us.”

“It didn’t feel like that to me though,” Steve said, sounding uncertain. “It felt like you didn’t think my job was important, that yours was the only one that mattered.”

Tony scoffed, not wanting to dignify that with an answer. Like he hadn’t shown up to every parade and ceremony Steve had asked him to, even when the threat of redeployment had loomed.

“Well, what about you?” Tony snapped, feeling raw. “You stopped liking me.” And that had hurt, it had hurt a lot. Because Steve, Steve had always believed in him. To have him say he didn’t support Tony had cut deep.

“No,” Steve said softly. “I said I didn’t like what you were becoming. You were being chipped away bit by bit by Stane, he was making you more and more like your dad and I could see that you hated it, but you kept at it anyway.” He sighed. “I may have said yes when Natasha suggested this, but it doesn’t mean I haven’t followed what you’ve been up to. Stopping weapons development, expanding on medical and clean energy. You’ve been doing great, Tones.”

Tony swallowed back the lump in his throat. “I found out he was dealing weapons under the table. Obie, I mean. He was selling to some bad people, and I had to actually face what our weapons were doing for the first time. I saw who they were really hurting. Civilians, _kids_ , Steve. I couldn’t keep doing it after that.” He tugged at his sleeve. “And I found out he planned to have me killed. The man was more of a father to me than Howard, and he-- Well, he’s in prison now. Nothing more to be done.”

“I know, I followed the story. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

“No, it isn’t. You loved him and he betrayed you. That’s not fine.”

Tony hummed. “Yeah well, nothing a few years of therapy won’t fix.”

It was silent for a moment, then Tony spoke again. “So you didn’t re-up then?”

Steve shook his head. “No. Bucky needed help, it didn’t feel right to leave him. I, uh— I’m an artist now, properly I mean. I haven’t made it big yet but I’m getting pieces displayed in some of the better galleries, doing some commercial work on the side. Just like you said I should.”

“Glad you listened to me about something.”

“Hey.”

“Sorry.”

Steve’s mouth twitched in the way Tony knew meant he was trying not to smile. “I volunteer too, at the VA and with underprivileged kids. Keeps me busy.”

“That’s great Steve,” Tony told him, and he meant it. Steve had always been made for better things than war and it sounded like he was on the right track. “Really it is.”

“I didn’t stop loving you,” Steve suddenly blurted and Tony’s eyes widened in surprise, his heart skipping a beat. “Just because I couldn’t watch you become everything you hated didn’t mean that leaving you hurt any less.”

“Steve…”

“Nat’s been bugging me for months to sign up to the site and I only agreed to get her off my back. I only said yes to this date because, well _‘nerdy engineer, my lab is my second home’,_ guess I have a type.”

“Yeah well, big, blond, ex-army artist wasn’t exactly a coincidence either,” Tony admitted. “I sort of figured it’d be like training wheels.”

“Right,” Steve chuckled, looking unsure. His hands clenched on the back of the chair and Tony ached to touch him.

They’d both changed, maybe…

Maybe things could be different this time?

“Hey, Steve?”

“Yeah?” And Tony could see the hope there, lurking in his eyes.

“Do you maybe want to have dinner with me?”

A huge beaming smile spread across his handsome face. “I’d love to.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed! - if you'd like to leave a comment but don't know what to say, I love emojis!!! ❤️
> 
> Come say hi! Follow me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/BladeoftheNebu1)/[Tumblr](https://bladeofthenebula27.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Join the [Put on the Suit (18+) server](https://discord.gg/z5WSqbS) over on discord to hang out with fellow stony fans! It’s a super welcoming community and we have a lot of fun ♥️


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